2004 MINI COOPER Complaints

I WAS ON AN EXIT RAMP FROM THE HIGHWAY AND AROUND THE CURVE I FELT THE STEERING STIFFEN. WHEN I HAD TO TURN RIGHT I HAD TO SWING VERY WIDE INTO THE OTHER LANE BECAUSE I HAD NO POWER STEERING. THANK GOD NO ONE WAS THERE! IT RETURNED AFTER I SHUT MY CAR OFF AFTER PULLING INTO A PARKING LOT. THEN THE NEXT DAY IT DID IT AGAIN. TODAY IT WENT OUT AND HASN'T RETURNED YET. MY HUSBAND CHECKED TO MAKE SURE THE FAN WORKED AND IT DOES. THIS IS A KNOWN TO BMW PROBLEM AND NO RECALL IN THE USA. CANADA HAS A RECALL. TELL ME PLEASE, WHY WE DO NOT? *TR

I WAS EXITING INTERSTATE AND SLOWING TO A STOP WHEN STEERING WHEEL NO LONGER WORKED EASILY. THE STEERING WHEEL BECAME HARD TO TURN, I WAS ABLE TO PULL OVER AND AVOID AN ACCIDENT. *TR

I DROVE MY SISTER'S 2004 MINI COOPER SOMETIME IN SPRING OF 2012 TO CHECK ON WORK DONE FROM THE DEALERSHIP. AS I YIELDED INTO A ROUNDABOUT AND ENTERED IT, THE POWER STEERING CUT OFF WHICH STEERING EFFORT BECAME VERY HEAVY AND VERY NEARLY HAD A COLLISION WITH ANOTHER VEHICLE. I SISTER INFORMED ME AFTERWARDS THAT THE ISSUE JUST HAPPEN RECENTLY OCCURRED TO HER TOO, AS SHE EXITED A HIGHWAY EXIT RAMP AT NEARLY 55MPH, AND POWER STEERING HAD FAILED. LUCKILY, SHE WAS ABLE TO REACT QUICKLY WITH THE POWER STEERING LOSS. PULLED TO THE SIDE, SHUT THE VEHICLE, AND TURNED ON THE VEHICLE AGAIN, AND POWER STEERING CAME BACK ON. IT HAS INTERMITTENTLY GOING OFF/ON W POWER SINCE THEN WHICH THE DEALER RECOGNIZES, BUT WARRANTY HAS BEEN EXPIRED SINCE IT'S 9 YEARS AND OVER 100,000 MI. AND WE ARE LEFT WITH A BILL AT AROUND $1,400 AVERAGE. $800 IN PARTS ALONE. THERE ARE MANY MINI CUSTOMERS KNOWN TO HAVE THIS ISSUE OF POWER STEERING LOSS IN THEIR EARLY MODELS TOO, SAME AS MY SISTER'S YEAR MODEL. SO FAR FORTUNATELY, THERE ARE NO INJURIES NOR FATALITIES DIRECTLY FROM THIS POWER STEERING LOSS FROM WHAT I KNOW OF. BUT MANY ARE FACED WITH THIS LARGE REPAIR WITH WE'RE FACING, AND SOME MAY FOREGO/ DELAY REPAIRING IT. TRANSPORT CANADA, RECOGNIZES THIS AS A SAFETY ISSUE, AND RECALLED ABOUT 9,000 MINI'S LAST YEAR. AND THE POWER STEERING PUMP PART IS NO DIFFERENT THAN THEIRS. WHEN ARE WE GOING TO ACT LIKE OUR NEIGHBORS? UNTIL WE GET SOMEONE HORRIBLY INJURED OR KILLED?! OR HAVE MINI CUSTOMERS SUCH MY SISTER FACING THIS LARGE REPAIR ORDER ON THIS DEFECTIVE PART THAT'S KNOWN TO FAIL PREMATURELY? THIS IS A SERIOUS GAMBLE WITH LIVES. *TR

I HAD PARKED MY CAR AT A DONUT SHOP AND WHEN I CAME OUT AND STARTED THE CAR AND GO, IT WAS VERY HARD TO TURN. I HAD TO CALL A FRIEND TO HELP ME TOW IT TO MY HOUSE. *TR

I WAS DRIVING DOWN I80 AND MY CAR STARTED TO KICK AND SPUTTER THEN THE ENGINE LIGHT WENT ON AND I DROPPED SPEEDS AND ALMOST GOT REAR ENDED BY THE CAR BEHIND ME HE SWERVED HONKED HIS HORN AND GAVE ME THE FINGER. I TOOK IT TO A SHOP AND THEY TOLD ME THE TRANSMISSION NEEDS TO BE REPLACED AND THE NUMBER THREE CYLINDER BLEW OUT AND I WOULD NEED TO REPLACE THE HEADGASKET AND REFURBISH THE ENGINE. WHEN I FIRST BOUGHT THE CAR IT WOULD PERIODICALLY KICK AND STALL OUT ON ME I TOOK IT BACK TO THE DEALER SHIP THEY TOLD ME IT WAS JUST THE ENGINE BREAKING IN. A COUPLE WEEKS LATER I SAW THE OIL WAS A LITTLE LOW AND AGAIN IT KICKED AND STALLED. I TOOK IT BACK IN THEY SAID THEY HAD TO REPROGRAM THE TRANNY. *TR

2004 MINI COOPER. CONSUMER REQUESTS ASSISTANCE FOR HAZARDOUS VEHICLE TRANSMISSION AND STEERING WHEEL. *SMD THE CONSUMER STATED THE VEHICLE STALLED WHILE DRIVING ON A BUSY HIGHWAY.

THE STEERING BECAME VERY TIGHT AND THE STEERING WHEEL WAS VERY HARD TO TURN. THE SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER STEERING WAS VERY SCARY AT NORMAL STREET SPEEDS. SHUTTING OFF THE CAR AND RESTARTING IT WILL RETURN THE STEERING TO NORMAL ONLY FOR A LITTLE BIT...AFTER A FEW MINUTES THE POWER STEERING IS GONE AGAIN. *TR

I BOUGHT MY USED MINI COOPER S (64,686 MILES) FROM HONDA DEALERSHIP - SERRAMONTE (DALY CITY, CA) ON MARCH 13, 2012. I'M THE SECOND OWNER OF THIS VEHICLE. THE STEERING PROBLEM FIRST OCCURRED ON JUNE 2012, BUT IT WAS TEMPORARY. WHILE DRIVING THE STEERING WHEEL BECAME HARD TO MANEUVER FROM LEFT TO RIGHT. I HAD TO PULL OVER AND STOPPED THE CAR TO SEE WHAT'S WRONG. IT CAME BACK TO NORMAL AFTER I TURNED ON THE ENGINE. THE STEERING PROBLEM WOULD HAPPEN OCCASIONALLY, I WOULD DO THE SAME PROCEDURES AND THE STEERING WOULD GO BACK TO NORMAL AGAIN. TODAY (3/27/13), WHILE I WAS DRIVING AT 35 MPH IN THE RESIDENTIAL AREA, I NOTICED MY STEERING WHEEL STIFFEN LIKE LAST TIME. I STOPPED AND TURNED OFF THE ENGINE AND FIRED IT BACK UP. THIS TIME, IT STAYED STIFF PERMANENTLY. I HAD TO DRIVE THE CAR BACK HOME DURING RUSH HOURS. LUCKILY I MANAGED TO GET HOME WITHOUT GETTING INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT. I CHECKED THE STEERING FLUID LEVEL UNDER THE HOOD AND FOUND OUT THAT IT WAS FULL. I GOOGLED THE STEERING PROBLEM ON THE 2004 MINI COOPER S, I CAME TO FIND OUT THE SAME PROBLEMS WERE EXPERIENCED BY MANY MINI OWNERS. I NEED YOUR ADVICE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE ON HOW I CAN GET MY CAR REPAIRED BEFORE IT CAUSE A MAJOR ACCIDENT ON THE ROAD. THIS IS THE ONLY VEHICLE I HAVE TO MAKE A LIVING. BECAUSE OF THESE COMMON STEERING PROBLEMS, I HOPE MINI WOULD TAKE FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR THIS. *TR

POWER STEERING RANDOMLY GOES OUT ON CAR. LOW-SPEED FAN HAS SEIZED, DAMAGING POWER STEERING PUMP. CAR HAS NO POWER STEERING AT ALL. *TR

I STOPPED MY CAR IN A PARKING LOT TO RUN SOME ERRANDS. WHEN I RETURNED TO MY CAR AND GOT IT STARTED, I REALIZED THAT THE POWER STEERING OF MY CAR BECAME REALLY STIFF. IT WAS REALLY HARD FOR ME TO STEER MY CAR LEFT AND RIGHT. THE POWER STEERING OF MY CAR NO LONGER FUNCTION AS BEFORE AND IT WAS REALLY DIFFICULT FOR ME TO DRIVE ON THE ROAD, ESPECIALLY WHEN I HAVE TO TURN LEFT OR RIGHT AT A ROAD JUNCTION. *TR